The Trials Of One's Youth
by sol-li
Summary: While Kagome and Sango are away, Inuyasha and Miroku find a cave protected by a barrier -- only to fall victim to a bizarre curse. Now the girls must find a way to break the curse and reverse the spell.
1. Chapter 1

CHAPTER ONE

.

"Aw damn," Inuyasha muttered. "It still stings."

"What do you expect?" Miroku said, rifling through the sack of supplies. "You DID get several spikes right in the chest. You were lucky that you weren't hurt more badly than you actually were."

"Feh. That was just a buncha flesh wounds." Inuyasha rubbed his ribs. "But it does sting. When the girls get back, I'm gonna ask Kagome for something to put on it."

"Why don't you use them right now? I'm sure Kagome won't mind."

"Because, monk, last time I did, I ended up walkin' around for the next few days with no skin on my legs." Inuyasha grimaced at the memory. Shippo hadn't let him alone for that particular screwup, and doing just about anything -- walking, bathing, sleeping -- had been agony until his raw legs had healed.

Inuyasha crouched down by the sputtering fire, and blew on it. A pair of rather sad-looking fish were suspended on sticks, waiting for the girls to come back. Inuyasha was starving, but he'd prefer to starve than to take their fish. He'd already kept Shippo off it several times.

The girls were off in one of the neighboring towns, picking up a few supplies. It was their turn to go shopping, as Kagome put it. Inuyasha hated doing the "shopping," since it always meant that he had to keep an eye on Miroku. If he let the monk out of his sight, he always found Miroku in some secluded spot, feeling up an easily-swayed peasant girl.

The worst part was, Miroku was also the best at haggling and finding bargains. It's just 'cause he's such a cheat, Inuyasha thought darkly. A cheat and a lecher and a pretty cruddy Buddhist to boot... don't know why he bothers being a monk at all...

Inuyasha's stomach growled loudly. Kirara, who was snoring nearby, started out of her sleep.

"Are you hungry, Inuyasha?" Shippo asked.

"'Course I am."

Shippo paused, still surrounded by long strands of colorful plastic string. Inuyasha rued the day Kagome had taught him how to make keychains out of it. Like they had any keys anyway. Now the fox spent all his time making them.

"Should we go catch more fish, Inuyasha?" Miroku said. "After all, it should be quite awhile before the girls return."

"Why not? Ain't like we have anything better to do."

Miroku rose and dusted himself off. "Shippo, you and Kirara stay here and guard the camp."

"And if Kagome and Sango get back early, tell 'em we're off getting fish," Inuyasha added.

"Okay," Shippo said cheerfully. "I gotta finish this rope anyway."

As the two young men walked off toward the river, Miroku glanced pointedly at Inuyasha. "Can we please fish the conventional way this time? Your personal way really isn't to my taste."

"It works, don't it?"

"Yes, it works. But you're always sopping wet afterwards. Besides, it isn't very dignified to jump in and flail around with a fish in each hand."

"That's the way I fish. You don't like it, get the food yourself. I don't care about the dignity part of it." Inuyasha folded his hands into his sleeves.

As they walked, something caught his eye. He stopped, and Miroku passed by him, still heading for the river. Frowning, Inuyasha went over a small grassy knoll, and peered down over a dry stream. There was a little cave there. Not very big -- the top of his head would probably graze the ceiling. It smelled like wet moss and damp earth -- but there was something else about it.

Inuyasha frowned. Some sort of string or rope was looped over the mouth of the cave, with little bits of paper stuck to it. A barrier of some kind... over a cave? Just what sort of nutjob did that? Or was there something INSIDE the cave, that nobody wanted them to see? Whatever it was, he wanted to see it. He couldn't go past the barrier, but he could still look past it.

Inuyasha strode toward the cave -- and felt something tug at his leg. "What the...?"

It was a tangle of nearly invisible threads, which had somehow gotten wrapped around his ankle. And it had some bits of paper attached too. "Another damn barrier," Inuyasha grumbled.

"Inuyasha?" Miroku stepped over the knoll. "What are you doing?"

"I'm tying myself up, what does it look like?" Inuyasha said.

"Is that a barrier?"

Inuyasha lifted his foot off the ground. The barrier sparkled unpleasantly against his leg. "Yeah, but I bet I can pull out of it."

"Don't do that!" Miroku started forward.

Three things happened at once. Miroku's hand grabbed Inuyasha's shoulder, as if to keep the half-demon from any more movements. Inuyasha yanked his leg from the threads of the barrier. And a blinding white light enveloped both of the young men -- and when the light vanished, no one stood in the clearing at the mouth of the cave.

TO BE CONTINUED


	2. Chapter 2

CHAPTER TWO

x.

"Inuyasha! Miroku!"

Shippo's shrill voice echoed through the woods. A tiny form trotted through the bushes, glancing around. "Now where did they go?" the fox-demon mumbled. "They've been gone for hours now, so they should be back already."

He sat down on a flat rock, and rubbed his head. "Maybe I should have gone with them," he said, glancing around. He knew Inuyasha -- always getting in trouble. And Miroku was always chasing pretty girls, even when Sango was around. Together, they could have gotten in a serious mess.

"Inuyasha!" Shippo called again. "Miroku! Where are you?"

Then he paused, looking around at the trees. "Where am I?" he asked rhetorically.

x.

"I wonder what Inuyasha and Miroku have been doing all this time," Sango said, slinging a sack over her shoulder.

"I don't know," Kagome said, following the demon-slayer. "If they were any other guys, I would think they were just guy-bonding. But with Inuyasha and Miroku, it's more likely that they just are getting on each other's nerves."

"Probably..."

"Did you find that silk you were looking for?"

The two young women chatted quietly as they walked back to the camp, discussing what they had bought at a market in the village. Kagome shifted the rough sack on her shoulder. Sometimes it was nice to have some time alone with Sango -- Miroku's womanizing and Inuyasha's crabbiness kept things from ever getting dull, but it did get tiring after awhile.

Suddenly Sango stopped, and frowned.

"What's wrong?" Kagome asked, shifting her sack.

"I thought I heard something." Sango shook her head. "No, it was probably just a bird."

But Sango still looked troubled as they returned to the camp. The fire had died down to a few embers, and the water in the pot had boiled away. Kagome quickly lifted it off and left it to cool. "Where are the guys?" she asked, glancing around.

"I'm not sure," Sango said, frowning. "Shippo and Kirara are gone as well." She picked up the remains of some roasted fish, and then tossed them aside. "Cold. They must have left some time ago."

A few minutes later, the two girls were wandering through the woods, calling out Inuyasha and Miroku's names. Rationally, Kagome knew that probably nothing had happened. Inuyasha and Miroku could take care of themselves. Between Inuyasha's half-demon strength and Miroku's wind tunnel, they could defeat almost anyone.

So why do I feel so uneasy? she thought.

Then she heard a faint noise, somewhere between a squeak and a yelp. "Inuyasha?" Kagome called, stepping off the path. Vines fell in her face, and she quickly pushed them aside, struggling through the bushes and long grass. "I'm coming, Inuyasha! Hold on!"

Something tugged at her ankle, but Kagome shook it off. It was some sort of string, with pieces of paper attached to it. It looked vaguely familiar, but Kagome wasn't inclined to stop. "Inuyasha, where are you?" she called. "Say something, please! Where are you?"

Another talisman snagged her sock. Kagome tripped and tumbled down a shallow bank, landing with an unceremonious thud. "Ow!" she muttered, rubbing her sore backside. Then she blinked, staring through the veil of trees. In front of her, she could see a huge expanse of darkness, and a flash of red in front of it...

"Inuyasha!" she called, scrambling to her feet. "Finally!"

But when she pushed her way to the cave's mouth, she stopped. Miroku and Inuyasha's clothes were crumpled on the ground, as if the two young men had stepped out of them. But... why in the world would they be wandering naked through the woods?

"Why did he leave his clothes behind?" Kagome murmured. She grabbed one of the baggy red sleeves -- and gasped as she saw what was underneath.

TO BE CONTINUED


	3. Chapter 3

CHAPTER THREE

x.

"Inuyasha?"

Large golden eyes blinked up at her. A pointed dog ear twitched behind a tuft of silver hair. And Kagome's stomach twisted into an uncomfortable knot as she pulled away the folds of Inuyasha's red clothing. For a moment, she thought she was dreaming.

There was a silver-haired, dog-eared baby lying under Inuyasha's clothes.

"I-Inuyasha?" Kagome whispered. "Is that... YOU?"

The baby blinked at her again, then raised a small chubby fist over his head. He made an odd, high-pitched noise. And a look of sheer horror crossed his tiny face as he looked at his tiny, naked body in the full sunlight, without the clothes draped over him.

An earsplitting wail cut through the quiet forest.

"Inuyasha? It IS you!" Kagome cried, scooping up the hysterical baby. "Inuyasha, it's gonna be okay. I'll figure out something. Just calm down!"

Inuyasha would not be calmed. He just howled louder, twisting in Kagome's arms. Tears were trickling from the corners of his eyes, but he didn't look unhappy -- he looked enraged. Kagome rocked him awkwardly, trying to think of what to do. But what COULD she do? What had happened, to make him transform into a little baby?

Then a horrible thought came into Kagome's mind. Inuyasha freaked out when he saw himself, she thought. Does that mean he's still got his adult mind inside a baby's body? His outraged expression and howls of anger made her think that he did.

Kagome quickly grabbed the folds of Inuyasha's clothing and wrapped them around his tiny body, even though he definitely didn't fit them anymore. The half-demon stopped howling long enough to stare at her, and hiccup tearfully. Kagome cuddled him against her shoulder, resisting the urge to rumple his head. This is awful, she thought. Poor Inuyasha...

Out of the corner of her eye, she saw something else -- a dark mass of cloth. Miroku's robes. Kagome felt her heart sink as she used her free hand to pull the robes away. Underneath was another naked baby boy, blinking at the sudden burst of light. He had solemn dark eyes, rumpled dark hair... and rosary beads wound loosely around one clenched fist.

"Miroku?" Kagome asked in disbelief.

Miroku stared at her in equal disbelief. Inuyasha just made a muffled growling sound, before starting to shriek again.

As Kagome reached over to touch Miroku, her hand caught on something. It was another one of those thin threads, with little pieces of paper tied to them. Talismans, or barriers or whatever. Kagome's shocked brain couldn't remember exactly what they were called. What were they doing here in the middle of the woods?

Inuyasha's shrill yells interrupted her thoughts. "It's gonna be okay, calm down," Kagome said, patting him on the back. It only made Inuyasha shriek louder, apparently letting her know that he would NOT calm down and that it was NOT okay. His little clenched feet were kicking her in the stomach, and his face was turning bright red.

"Kagome?"

Kagome glanced back. Two figures were stepping out of the woods -- Sango and Shippo. "Sorry I took so long. Shippo got lost in the w--oh!" One of the strings caught at Sango's leg, almost tripping her. She grabbed a tree trunk and regained her balance.

"Be careful," Kagome warned her. "They're all over the place."

"What was all that noise just now?" Then Sango saw the little silver head and flushed face, peering angrily over Kagome's shoulder. "Is that... that can't possibly be... Inuyasha?"

Inuyasha made a noise between a squeal and a snarl.

"Miroku too," Kagome said, pointing at the second baby. "We have a serious problem on our hands!"

Inuyasha snuffled in agreement.

TO BE CONTINUED


	4. Chapter 4

CHAPTER FOUR  
  
x.  
  
For a moment, Sango stared in complete disbelief at Kagome and the two very familiar babies. Then her eyes fell to the almost invisible threads strung across the cave, around the trees. "Shippo!"  
  
The little kitsune paused, one foot still in the air.  
  
"Don't move forward," Sango said a little more calmly. "Just get back, and go to the camp. Wait for us there."  
  
"S-sure," Shippo said nervously. He backed away several steps, then turned and ran off into the trees.  
  
Kagome looked down at Inuyasha, still feeling dazed. His face was flushed, and he was staring up at her in an almost panicked way. His features were already crumpling into another outraged howl. She could almost read his thoughts: How the hell am I supposed to fight like this? What the hell happened to me?  
  
Miroku wasn't doing much better. He wasn't screaming his head off, but he was staring at his tiny, chubby fists, with a look of horror on his small face. Sango knelt down beside him and awkwardly picked him up. Then she looked down, looked embarrassed, and quickly snatched up his robe to wrap around him, like a blanket.  
  
"What HAPPENED?" Kagome asked, voicing Inuyasha's question.  
  
"I'm not sure." Sango reached out and plucked the threads.  
  
"I touched those -- I haven't turned into a baby."  
  
"I know. I'm not sure what could have happened." Joggling a fussing Miroku on one arm, Sango snatched up his prayer beads, and wound them several times around his chubby little arm. "There... that ought to last until we can find some smaller ones."  
  
Kagome began gathering Inuyasha's things as well -- basically just his clothes and his sword. The rosary still hung around his small neck, dangling almost to his knees. She double-looped it around his neck, which only made him shriek louder. "It'll be okay," Kagome said, wrapping him up in his voluminous clothing. "We'll find some way to turn you back.... somehow... I think..."  
  
That "I think" only made Inuyasha howl louder.  
  
x.  
  
And he kept howling after they had gotten back to the camp. Sango managed to rip up a sweatshirt of Kagome's into a pair of makeshift diapers, just so the men-turned-babies would be able to retain some small measure of their dignity. Not that it helped -- Miroku looked depressed and dejected. And Inuyasha made sure that the whole world knew how upset he was -- and he did it loudly enough to frighten the birds away.  
  
"Will you please shut up?" Kagome pleaded with him.  
  
Inuyasha glared at her before uttering a shrill wail. Why should I shut up? Just LOOK at me! his eyes demanded.  
  
"Inuyasha, please..."  
  
Another shriek of anger.  
  
After another half-hour, Kagome ended up snapping, "If you don't stop that now I'm gonna use that necklace!" Inuyasha's unearthly yowls stopped immediately, and he stared at her with tearful eyes, in a slightly swollen face. He looked shocked and rather pitiful. Kagome immediately felt ashamed of herself, and cuddled him to show that she hadn't meant it. What seemed like a mild discipline when he was big seemed downright cruel now that he had turned into a baby. He clung to her blouse, sniffling.  
  
Now that she thought about it, she could see why Inuyasha was so freaked out. Suddenly he was little, helpless, unable to even feed himself or sit up without somebody pushing him from behind. He didn't even have fangs or claws. And he couldn't even pick up his treasured sword, let alone draw it. And he was hiccuping into her shoulder, rather wetly.  
  
"Don't worry," Kagome said, patting him on the back. That only earned another indignant yell. "Sorry, sorry." His ears were right near her chin, and they were getting more tempting by the minute.  
  
"Kagome?" Sango suddenly spoke up. "Now that Inuyasha's calmed down... perhaps we should go back to that cave."  
  
"Sure," Kagome said. "Inuyasha, let go of my hair. We're going to try to turn you back to normal."  
  
TO BE CONTINUED 


	5. Chapter 5

CHAPTER FIVE

x.

"What are those things?" Kagome said, peering at the cave. The threads were half invisible, but in the sunlight she could see little shiny white lines.

"They're special charms," Sango said. "They're meant to be like those barriers that monks and priestesses put up, and they have been set as a trap."

"But they aren't much like a trap -- it just looks like someone tangled dozens of little threads up, and left them here."

"I know. That's part of the trap -- that the victim thinks it's just an annoyance until it's too late." Sango sighed. "Evidently, this one is rigged to de-age the victim until they're just babies, unable to move into the cave and attack."

"So," Kagome said, reaching out to touch a thread, then pulling back, "you think this is what turned Inuyasha and Miroku into babies?"

"I know it is."

"But that doesn't make any sense! I touched the threads, and I haven't turned into a baby yet."

"That's because the charms only work on one thing."

Kagome frowned. "Men?"

"No, demons."

"Then why is Miroku a baby?"

Sango pondered this for a moment. Then she said, "It might be... if Miroku grabbed Inuyasha just as the charm triggered, then the spell would have affected them both. Even though Miroku is a human...."

"Wow," Kagome whispered. She moved away from the cave a few steps, thinking to the look of sheer horror on Inuyasha's face when he had seen his wobbly baby body. "Did demon-slayers ever use these charms to capture demons?"

"Very rarely. These charms can only be put in places where you KNOW a demon is going to pass through, like a cave mouth or a den. But in those situations, usually there were easier, less risky methods for dealing with a demon. Like poison powder, or fire. It was sheer bad luck that Inuyasha ran into these charms."

Kagome reached out and plucked one of the taught threads. "But... now that they've been transformed into babies... how do we change them back?"

Sango sighed. "That's just what I was wondering..."

x.

It was a curse. It had to be.

Inuyasha couldn't imagine anything else that would explain his life. For as long as he could remember, it was just one disaster after another -- or worse, disasters that lasted for years. Maybe someone had put a curse on him when he was a baby or something. Because he didn't think it was possible for one person to have so much rotten luck in one lifetime... unless he was paying off some major bad karma...

"Hey, Inuyasha," Shippo said, poking Inuyasha's shoulder. "How are you feeling?"

Inuyasha glared balefully at the kitsune. The last thing he needed was Shippo babysitting him. Hell, I'm almost as big as him, even like this! he thought angrily.

He felt as if he had died and ended up in a particularly nasty hell, although he was fairly sure that he had done nothing in his life horrible enough to condemn him to THIS. Now he was tiny and helpless. He had no fangs. His claws were all puppy soft, and he was pretty sure he couldn't strike anything accurately with his weak little hands.

Plus, he was fairly sure that he couldn't even sit up without help. Let alone walk or... well, crawl. Frustrated, Inuyasha began flailing his arms and legs around -- but that only frustrated him more, since he could barely control them.

Suddenly Kagome was looming over him. She looked a lot.... bigger than he was used to. "Feeling okay, Inuyasha?" she asked.

Inuyasha stuck out his tongue at her.

"Well, I can understand that," Kagome said, picking him up.

Looking at his grim little face, Kagome tried not to flinch. His little pointed ears were barely poking out of some very unruly silver hair. And for one moment, she had the urge to start playing with his ears. Quickly she set him down on his back, and was overcome by another temptation -- to tickle his stomach.

Don't even think about tickling him, girl, she thought. Tickle Inuyasha when he can't get away, and he'll never forgive you for it.

So Kagome settled for ruffling his silver hair, and explaining about the charms they had found in the cave. The half-demon listened with grim attention, until she had finished up with, "And Sango says that she's trying to figure out a way to reverse the spell, or find out who could do it. So just try to stand it a little longer, huh?"

Inuyasha seized one of her thumbs in each tiny fist, and grunted loudly. Slowly he pulled himself up into a sitting position. His face seemed to say, "I'm not letting anything keep me down!"

TO BE CONTINUED


	6. Chapter 6

CHAPTER SIX

x.

"Any luck?" Kagome asked.

"Not so far," Sango said, discouraged.

Kagome sighed heavily. Inuyasha was slumped in her lap like a half-empty sack of sugar, too tired to wail anymore. And Miroku had already fallen asleep on top of Kirara's back, after an afternoon of depressed whining. Sango knelt down beside the infant monk and carefully draped a small blanket over him.

"I talked to the priestess in that village," Sango finally said. "She says she didn't put up the charmed barrier, and has promised to take it down so no one else will hit it. But she did tell me who might have...."

"Who?" Kagome said. Inuyasha perked up, looking deeply interested.

"She says that there was a hermit living there until a few years ago. Apparently he lived in absolute terror of all demons, and did everything he could to stay far away from them." Sango narrowed her eyes. "That cave was one place where he stayed."

Kagome frowned. "Where is he now?"

"She said that he fled to the north about two years ago. Something about a mountain shaped like an anvil -- she can't quite remember. Apparently she didn't think it would ever be important."

"So we're going to go find him?" Shippo asked.

Inuyasha gave Shippo a filthy look. If he could have spoken, Kagome suspected that he would have snapped, "Of course we're going to find him, you little idiot!"

"Isn't there some other way to turn them back to normal?" Kagome asked.

"Apparently not." Sango picked up the drowsing Miroku and dandled him in her lap. She looked a little embarrassed, holding the notably lecherous monk that close to her. "We have to find that hermit before we can ever hope to turn Inuyasha and Miroku back to normal."

Inuyasha made a pitiful noise and buried his face in Kagome's sleeve.

x.

"Well, think about it this way," Kagome said, wrapping a thin blanket around Inuyasha's wobbly little body. "You don't have to do any fighting and get hurt for awhile. And you won't have to hunt jewel shards. It's like a vacation."

Inuyasha glared at her.

I just hope we don't run into anyone along the way, he thought darkly as Kagome put him down. The image of that mangy, fleabitten Koga came into his mind. If that rabid wolf heard that Inuyasha had been transformed into a baby, he'd be on Kagome like a... well, a wolf on a helpless young girl. And the thought of having... ANYONE see him was more than alarming.

If Koga sees me like this, I'm gonna just end it all... once I get my hands to hold a sword, he thought darkly.

Sango was curling up under a blanket, with the sleepy Miroku beside her, and Shippo behind her. The baby monk had a pensive look on his face, as if he were thinking deeply about something. And Sango just looked flustered. Inuyasha couldn't blame her -- after all, Miroku was probably still a lecher even in that form.

Suddenly he was lifted from behind. "Come on, time for bed," Kagome said.

As he was placed on Kagome's sleeping bag, Inuyasha realized what was happening. His small face turned red, and he began energetically waving his arms and making frantic "uh!" noises.

"Are you getting bashful?" Kagome said.

Inuyasha glared at her again. Even if he was a baby, he still had his adult mind. And it didn't feel... well, right.

"Come on, Inuyasha. You're going to freeze if you sleep by yourself," Kagome chided. "Besides, you're so small that an animal could just walk off with you in its mouth. And I don't want you carried of and eaten by a wolf. All right?"

Inuyasha was still flushed when Kagome curled up beside him and rested her head beside his. Dammit, I'm not gonna like this, he thought determinedly. I refuse to like it.

As if reading his mind, Kagome cuddled him from behind. And despite his best efforts, he just let himself snuggle back She felt... safe... and warm... she smelled nice... Inuyasha yawned, trying to hide it behind his fist.

TO BE CONTINUED


	7. Chapter 7

CHAPTER SEVEN

x.

Kagome is so lucky, Sango thought.

She sighed and looked down at the dark-haired baby on her bedroll. Miroku was half-asleep already, sucking on his fist, but she saw his eyes brighten a little as she curled up beside him. She's lucky, the demon-slayer thought again. She can trust Inuyasha to behave himself even when he's an adult. But with Miroku, who knows?

"Keep your hands to yourself, monk," she said ominously as she pulled the covers over him. "Even if you are a baby right now."

To her surprise, Miroku didn't react at all. He just closed his dark eyes.

After that, Sango almost fell asleep several times. But a nagging feeling of guilt clung to her, keeping her awake. Miroku had been depressed all day -- and Sango wasn't surprised. One minute he was an adult, the next he was trapped in a small, wobbly, helpless body. No wonder he had been miserable -- too miserable, probably, to even have his usual lecherous ideas.

I wonder if he's cold, Sango thought suddenly.

As carefully as possible, she slid her arm around Miroku and gathered him closer, just before they both fell asleep.

x.

"No, not yet," Kagome moaned. A tiny foot kicked her in the stomach again, and she sleepily inched backwards. "Shippo, you can't crawl in with me like this..."

A high-pitched squeal woke her up.

"Huh, what?" Kagome gasped, sitting upright in her sleeping bag. A terrible memory came back to her, and she slowly turned to look at the tiny kicking creature in her bedding. Golden eyes. White hair. Dog ears. Very sour expression, as if he had been offended.

"Oh no," Kagome whispered. "So it WASN'T just a dream..."

Inuyasha glared at her balefully, as if saying, "Of course not!"

"Oh no," Kagome repeated, covering her face. "Sango, are you awake?"

"I'm right here," Sango said from the other side of the campfire. Miroku was on the ground beside her, trying to break a stick in half. Kirara was nosing at him, and mewing curiously. "How is Inuyasha?"

"A baby. Same as last night." Kagome wrinkled her nose. "Um, Sango, I'll be right back in a few minutes." She hefted Inuyasha onto her shoulder and set out into the woods, with the puzzled half-demon peeping over her shoulder.

Sango yawned and began packing their travelling gear, along with her knives and boomerang. Shippo woke up as well, rubbing his eyes with his tiny fists, and Kirara began grooming herself in anticipation of a very busy day. Miroku was still fast asleep, and Sango didn't plan to wake him until they were ready to leave.

Suddenly a high, bloodcurdling scream echoed through the woods.

Sango automatically reached for her boomerang, then stopped. "Was that.... Inuyasha?" she said slowly.

Miroku just blinked. "I think it was," Shippo said slowly.

More howls came from somewhere in the woods, sending chills down Sango's spine. Inuyasha was really letting rip out there, if he was loud enough that she could hear him back at the camp. Just what is she doing to him? she thought, a little irritated. Roasting him alive?

Suddenly the noises stopped. Sango listened carefully, but could hear nothing more. She wondered for a moment if she should follow -- after all, what if Inuyasha and Kagome had been attacked? That might be why Inuyasha was shrieking like a... well, like a baby.

"Shippo, stay with Miroku," she ordered.

But as the demon-slayer started to run into the woods, she saw Kagome coming back down the forest path. Inuyasha was still against her shoulder, with his face beet-red and sullen. "... really sorry I had to do that, but until you can do it for yourself, I'm going to have to. Besides," she told the offended half-demon, "there's no reason to be embarrassed. I mean, you're a BABY right now! Seeing you like that is okay, right?"

Inuyasha showed no signs of emerging from his sulk.

"Oh," Sango said. "So THAT'S what you had to do." She wasn't looking forward to dealing with Miroku that way either. She had always tried to avoid changing babies when she was growing up.

Kagome hefted Inuyasha higher on her shoulder. "Sango, do you think that Kaede might have some idea of what to do about them?"

"I hope so," Sango said. She tied the bundles to Kirara's back, then scooped Miroku up. "She might at least be able to give us pointers about where to go next." She jumped up on Kirara's back, and helped Kagome on. Shippo bounced up onto the fire-cat's head. "Let's just hope we can get them back to normal before someone like Sesshomaru or Naraku finds out."

TO BE CONTINUED


End file.
